PayScale’s VIP Blog Roundup: Using Facebook for Work (Without Looking Like a Slacker)

When is a time-waster like Facebook anything but? When it’s your job. For social media managers and people in similar occupations, spending time on Facebook and Twitter isn’t a distraction from their job – it is the job. The trouble starts when your job description includes social media, but lots of other duties as well; when a co-worker sees you scrolling through feeds, they’re apt to think you’re squandering company time. In this week’s roundup, we look at some expert advice on not looking lazy when you’re working hard; plus, how to get followers for your blog and how to impress prospective employers online.

I work in a large nonprofit, on a team of two that manages one program. I recently created a Facebook page and LinkedIn group for our program. Additionally, I created and curate an internal newsletter in which I summarize relevant articles and share them with staff that have opted in; to collect the articles that I include I use twitter, Facebook, and wide variety of websites (traditional news outlets, new media sites like Buzzfeed and Vox, blogs, etc.). All told, I spend at least an hour a day on social media and news sites for work.

We work in an open office plan, and I worry that people get the wrong impression when they see me with multiple tabs of twitter feeds and blog posts open when they walk by… Is there anything I could or should do about this?

Alison’s advice is good for anyone who does similar work at their job … or anyone who might have the tendency to overthink things like this. (In other words: most of us.)

If you keep a personal blog for professional reasons, you know what a big deal that is. If you also try to keep up with social media, you know how easy it is to lose steam on the longform end and invest all your branding energy in social. The goal is to balance the two so that you can build something lasting, while expanding your reach.

Before the internet, all you had to show for yourself was a resume, cover letter, and maybe a portfolio of work. Now, technology makes it easier than ever to show prospective employers what you’ve got to offer. Of course, the downside of that is that expectations have gone up accordingly.

“Recruiters, human resources, and hiring managers are searching online for talent,” Morgan writes. “Some use LinkedIn, some search the Internet, and some do both. Employers are also checking you out online. They’ll search for your name using Google or LinkedIn. The information you share online, or lack thereof, will determine whether or not you get called!”

Jen Hubley Luckwaldt

Jen Hubley Luckwaldt writes about work-life balance, stress management, and other topics relating to what makes us happy at work. A full-time freelancer, she deals with stress by blurring the lines between life and work to the point where the two spheres are barely separate. The happiest day of her career was when scientists proved that looking at pictures of cute animals makes us more productive.